12 Ways to Prepare Your Home Before Your Newborn Arrives

You’ll want to ensure your home is ready for your little bundle of joy once he or she arrives in the world, so both of you can settle in with ease after childbirth. If you are unsure how or where to start, here are 12 ways to prepare your home before your newborn arrives.

1. Deep Clean Your Home

Hygiene is important when caring for a baby. You must therefore deep clean your home prior to your daughter or son’s arrival. For example, ensure their nursery carpet is dirt and dust free with a Boise carpet cleaning service, so the room will both appear and feel fresh for your little one. You should also scrub and dust every surface to ensure the room is clean and tidy.

2. Target the Grubbiest Areas within the Home

Many people often forget about the grubbiest areas within the home during the deep clean process. Believe it or not, it is not the doorknobs and light switches that are the dirtiest areas within the home. It is the kitchen sink, stove top, faucet handles, countertops, cutting boards, refrigerator handles, toothbrush holders, and dish rags. You must ensure each area is thoroughly cleaned before and after you welcome your baby into the home.

3. Decorate a Nursery

Even if you plan for your baby to sleep in your bedroom for the first few months, you should decorate a nursery prior to their arrival. Neutral color schemes are ideal for expectant parents who have yet to learn a child’s gender, such as beige, yellow, or white. You will also need to buy a cot, wardrobe, chest of drawers, and a baby changing unit.

4. Hang Blackout Blinds

Sleep deprivation can impact a new parent’s health and happiness. The more your baby sleeps, the more you will sleep, which is why you must hang blackout blinds in your bedroom and your child’s nursery. This will ensure natural sunlight or street lighting will not wake your baby, so he or she can enjoy a peaceful sleep and will only wake once they are well-rested. Check out this website to learn more about the different black out blinds that may be available to you.

5. Prepare for Visitors

Will your parent or sibling stay over to help you adjust to parent life once your baby arrives? If so, you must prepare your home for visitors now, so you will not need to do so after childbirth, as you’ll be preoccupied with many more important tasks. So, change the bed sheets, tidy the guest room, and stock up on toiletries, such as toothpaste and toilet paper.

6. Perform a Home Safety Examination

While your baby will be unable to crawl or walk once you bring him or her home, you can guarantee it will not be long until your child is on the move. So, you’ll want your home to be ready for when your child starts to crawl, walk, and climb. You should, therefore, perform a safety exam of your home, ensuring your son or daughter cannot climb into cabinets and open chemical products. For example, all laundry and cleaning products, and medications, must be stored out of reach and out of sight of children. You can also use magnetic locks to make sure cabinets are firmly shut.

7. Remove or Improve Furniture

While you might be head over heels in love with your stylish glass table or metal furniture, they are not baby-friendly and must be removed from the home. Also, if your furniture has sharp edges, you must smooth the furniture with either plastic guards or bubble wrap.

8. Set-up Sanitizing Stations

It’s vital to protect your newborn’s health once they arrive in the world, as their immune system will still be developing. For this reason, you should set-up hand sanitizing stations across the home, so your baby is germ-free. While many experts believe soap and water is an effective way to get rid of germs, alcohol-based hand sanitizers are also a handy solution within the home. Always carry a pocket-sized bottle with you when out and about, but ensure you have bottles in every room, if you need them. You should also ask your loved ones to sanitize their hands before they hold your baby.

9. Make Room in Your Fridge

The refrigerator will almost belong to the baby once they enter the home. As he or she will have an all-liquid diet, you’ll need a place to store all breast milk and formula. Friends and family might also send over dishes to help you settle your little one into his or her new home, so you’ll need plenty of storage space inside your fridge. So, take everything out to identify what you do or don’t need, and give your refrigerator a good scrub.

10. Declutter Your Rooms

Once your baby starts to crawl or walk, you can guarantee he or she will want to explore every room within the home – and they’ll want to touch absolutely everything. Before the baby arrives, use your spare time to declutter your rooms. Remove any items that could be easily accessible for a baby or could pose a safety risk.

11. Baby-Proof Electrics

Once babies are crawling, they will be climbing and pulling themselves up across the home. As a result, they might be tempted to touch electrical outlets, which is incredibly dangerous. Baby-proof your property by covering all electric outlets across the home. You should also ensure your baby cannot pull on any dangling cords, and you must remove all magnets.

12. Test the Baby Monitor

A baby monitor allows you to keep a close eye on your son or daughter when out of the room. Not only must you invest in a dependable, high-quality monitor, but you must test the device prior to your bundle of joy’s arrival. You’ll, therefore, have peace of mind your home is ready once you bring your baby son or daughter home for the first time. It will also bring you some much-needed comfort during your child’s first few days at home.